Pauline Maier accepted the 2011 George Washington Book Prize for Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787-1788 on Wednesday, May 25 at an elegant black-tie gala at Mount Vernon. The winner of one of the largest literary prizes in the country was presented with a medal and $50,000 check from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, which co-sponsors the prize with Washington College and George Washington’s Mount Vernon. The celebration honoring this year’s three finalists was attended by about 175 people, including faculty, board members, students and dignitaries from the worlds of publishing, academia, law and politics.